Sankeertanas by Annamacharya (1408-1503)
Translated
by Dr. M. Rajagopalachary
Annamacharya (1408-1503) is widely known as the father of Pada tradition of Poetry in Telugu (Andhra Pada Kavita Pitamaha) having written around 32, 000 sankeertanas out of which only 12, 000 are available now. He is the the pioneer of Sankeertana literature in carnatic music by showing the path to Purandaradasu in Kannada, Tyagaraju, Ramadasu in Telugu, and Venkatamakhi in Prakrit. His keertanas have pallavi, anupallavi (optional) and charanams. His Pallavi contains the central idea of the poem to be expanded in charanams. He has added a unique mudra of his own by using the name of Lord Venkateshwara instead of his own name in the last stanza. Annamacharya was abreast of his times as his compositions evidence rare social consciousness preaching equality of all irrespective caste, creed, gender, and position. His compositions have varied themes including selfless devotion, romanticism, detachment, metaphysical and existential enquiry and egalitarianism. He has a mass appeal because of his chaste idiomatic Telugu of Rayalaseema dialect with folk touch.
(Portrait of Annamacharya, by Lakshminarayana Sathiraju AKA 'Bapu')
1.
Why
study so many books...?
Why
study so many books and search everywhere in vain?
To
be precise, there are only two things—
Opening
the eye of wisdom and closing it!!
There
are only two words—yes and no
Either
way it is dangerous; Mind is the target of both!
Say
yes, it is bondage; Say no, it is deliverance
For
the discerning wise, there is only one way!!
One
takes birth and one passes away
The body is subjected to both these
changes
Birth
is uncertain; death is certain
For
the wise only one is justifiable—absence of the cycle of births!!
This
world is one and the other world is one
Distinctly
the embodied soul is the target of both
Lord
Venkatesha is the maker of both this world and the other
He
is the only eternal refuge for all the devout!!
(Annamacharya,
“Inniyu chadavanela yenthaa vedakanela…”)
2.
How do you get rid of grief...?
Whatever be your learning or listening,
How do you get rid of your grief and get
enriched?
Unless you abstain from calumny
Unless you are free from excessive lust
Unless you control your fickle-mindedness
How can you avoid misfortune and attain good fortune?
Unless you are free from greed
Unless you are unblemished
Unless you are free from ill-will
How can you overcome adversities and
attain the other world?
Unless you seek Lord Venkatesha in your
soul
Unless you are free from anger
Unless you abstain from telling lies
How can you overcome your uncertainty and
attain success?
(Annamacharya,
“Enta chadivina emivinina tana …”)
3. Jiva and
Paramatma
You
exist here as an individual soul, O Parrot!
And
as the Supreme Soul outside, O Parrot!
The
soul dwells in the cage of the body
And
is brought up by me only, O Parrot!
By
virtue of birth, you are caught in the shackles of deeds
And
turned poor, O Parrot!
Day
and night, you have studied brightly
At
my behest, O Parrot!
Hidden
behind the feathers of the body deftly
You
are not in a position to stand the chill, O Parrot!
You
are frightened of the Five Senses
And
continue to live in alarm, O Parrot!
For
whom do you hurry up except
The
unkind Arishadvargas, six hostile
temparaments, O Parrot!
Becoming
a slave to gluttony, you talk
A
thousand ways, O Parrot!
Though
vowed to interminable desires
You
still accompany me, O Parrot!
You
remind me of both god and human
And
remain in my mind always, O Parrot!
You
have made me realize that
This
is all illusion and can never be true, O Parrot!
Who
are you? And who am I?
There
is no absolute difference between you and me, O Parrot!
You
worship him in your heart and mind
On
Sri Venkatadri, O stubborn Parrot!
(Annamacharya,
“Jeevaatumai yundu chilukaa nee….”)
4. Where is the
need…?
When
darkness is spread all over, you need a torch to detect;
But
where is the need for a torch before a flood of light?
The
distressed need to be protected and assured of fearlessness
Where
is the need to save a happy comfortable man?
The
man lost in the flood needs to be saved quickly
Where
is the need to save the one on the shore?
The
bonds of the man involved in great karma
are to be broken
Where
is the need to free the man who is already free?
The
weak who cannot earn a living should always be fed
Where
is the need to feed the man who is fully fed?
The
outright sinner needs You to save
Why
does a discerning virtuous man need You?
If
Lord Venkateshwara doesn’t relent and rescue the helpless
What
use is His existence?
(Annamacharya,
“Teliya jeekatiki deepamettaka pedda”…)
5. Wake up, O Lord
of Romance!
Wake
up O noble Madana Gopala! Lord of Romance!!
Wake
up! O my unparalleled treasure!
You
are the wanton elephant who wanders curiously
In
the youth forest of tumultuous shepherdesses
You
are the bee that relishes
The
fragrance of the lotus-heart of Moon-faced Satyabhama
You
are the royal parrot caressing Rukmini
In
the cage of her embrace with love
You
are the rising Moon and
Feast
to the lotus-eyes of sixteen thousand wives!
You
are the blue cloud resting always on
The
hills of their breasts in a row in the lake
You
are the Wish-fulfilling Tree that grants boons
On
the Venkatadri bearing Lakshmi on Your chest!
(Annamacharya, “Meluko
shringaararaaya meti madanagopala…”)
Dr. M. Rajagopalachary, Retired Professor of English, Kakatiya University, Warangal, Telangana. Active researcher, scholar-critic and translator. Born and brought up at Warangal. Obtained M.A. (1975-OU), MPhil. (1979-KU) with Gold Medal, and Ph.D. (1982-KU). Worked on Manohar Malgonkar for MPhil and Bernard Malamud for PhD. Worked on Bhakti Literature and Egalitarianism under UGC Emeritus Fellowship and translated more than 200 Annamacharya sankeertanas into English. Published 19 books and 75 articles. Recently edited Post-Colonial Indian English Fiction, Bhakti Movement and Literature (Rawath), Multiculturalism in Indian Tradition and Literature (Atlantic) with Mr. K. Damodar Rao; Translated 8 books from Telugu to English and vice versa for TTD, Telugu Akademi, Hyderabad, Sri Aurobindo Society, Pondicherry and Warangal. Recent translations include—Telangana Armed Struggle-1948, Sri Venkateshwara: The Lord of Utsavas, Vallabhacharyulu, Malgudi Nundi Macondo daaka. Received the State Best Teacher Award (2009) from A.P., Best Teacher-Researcher Award from KU (2006), UGC Career Award (1986-89). Areas of research interest include Translation Studies, Comparative Literary Criticism, Indian Aesthetics, Indian Writing in English and Indian Literatures.
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